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Far from a far left wish list, the new admin policies will bolster border security more than Trump did. 
on the deportation moratorium (it's not on all deportations), halting of wall construction, asylum proposals, and expansion of legal immigration channels.
on the deportation moratorium (it's not on all deportations), halting of wall construction, asylum proposals, and expansion of legal immigration channels.
The 100 day moratorium explicitly prioritizes focusing scarce resources on deporting recent border crossers, individuals convicted of aggravated felonies, and those suspected of terrorism and espionage. https://www.dhs.gov/sites/default/files/publications/21_0120_enforcement-memo_signed.pdf
The Trump Admin failed to prioritize resources. Consequently, detentions for serious crimes like assault and burglary declined by ~1.5k from 2017-2020 while more ppl overall were detained for mundane offenses like traffic violations. https://trac.syr.edu/immigration/reports/585/
Just like "broken windows policing" doesn't actually decrease serious crime, deporting unauthorized immigrants over mundane offenses doesn't either. https://www.pnas.org/content/117/44/27262
In fact, aggressive immigration enforcement can destroy cooperation with immigrants and local police. ICE routinely misleads immigrants by claiming to be "the police" to convince immigrants to open their homes and arrest them. https://www.npr.org/2017/02/21/516488396/without-warrants-immigration-agents-often-pose-as-police-officers
When immigrants see local police as arms of immigration enforcement, trust drops and they are less likely to report crime and cooperate during investigations. Less punitive enforcement increases cooperation with police. https://www.thecgo.org/research/police-trust-and-domestic-violence-among-immigrants-evidence-from-vawa-self-petitions/
At the border, Trump's policy of trying to arrest everybody for illegal entry meant that less resources were spent prosecuting people referred for child sex trafficking. https://trac.syr.edu/tracreports/crim/629/
Biden would add 30k green cards for less skilled workers. Increasing legal work opportunities reduces unvetted illegal immigration. https://www.cato.org/blog/enforcement-didnt-end-unlawful-immigration-1950s-more-visas-did
Even during high unemployment, Americans aren't taking jobs in industries like landscaping or moving to rural areas where labor shortages are perpetual. https://www.cato.org/blog/trump-banned-many-h-2b-workers-no-more-us-workers-applied-now-he-may-extend-ban
Biden would also allow parents to sponsor their asylum seeking children after DNA tests and background checks. The admin would also identify Central Americans facing persecution before they show up at the border. Rob Portman endorses this. https://www.portman.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/hearing-dhs-experts-back-portman-proposal-use-refugee-model-address
Expanding our asylum processing is key to alleviating pressure at the border and helping us identify who comes in. The Trump Admin closed off asylum and caused more people to enter illegally, according to the former Border Patrol union head. https://www.cnn.com/2019/01/25/politics/border-patrol-union-asylum/index.html
Trump admin would turn away asylum seekers at multiple ports of entry, forcing them to enter illegally to claim asylum. The Trump Admin said it didn't have the space or personnel to process them, but an OIG investigation found this was false. https://www.oig.dhs.gov/sites/default/files/assets/2020-10/OIG-21-02-Oct20.pdf
An earlier FOIA request from @David_J_Bier found that CBP had at least half of its holding space available and increased more CBP officers per asylum seeker. Still, DHS said it didn't have capacity despite more space & resources and fewer asylum seekers. https://www.cato.org/blog/officials-misled-congress-ignore-asylum-law-set-family-separations
The border wall is unbelievably costly at around $15 billion in taxpayer money to build 738 miles of wall. $20 million per mile. https://www.propublica.org/article/records-show-trumps-border-wall-is-costing-taxpayers-billions-more-than-initial-contracts
Biden is moving to tech based security, which could include ground sensors and more rescue beacons and mobile watch towers. There's also likely to be improvements in internet access in rural areas so that Border Patrol may communicate easier.
Using mobile equipment avoids the problem of using eminent domain to build the wall on private property. solutions avoid the eminent domain problem. 10 years after Bush's 2006 Secure Fence Act, 1/3 of eminent domain claims still weren't resolved. http://www.npr.org/2017/02/23/516895052/landowners-likely-to-bring-more-lawsuits-as-trump-moves-on-border-wall
But border security alone is too blunt an instrument to halt illegal immigration, and hasn't worked previously. The new approach will be more effective by expanding our situational awareness at the border and broadening legal immigration channels. https://www.frdb.org/be/file/_scheda/files/Massey.pdf
We can't control our border if we don't let citizens sponsor the workers they need and force families to wait years, sometimes decades in line. Under these circumstances, ordinary people fleeing hardship & reuniting with family will cross illegally--along with real criminals.
